The Mets selected infielder Brad Emaus from the Blue Jays in last December’s Rule 5 Draft and were set on giving him regular looks at second base when the 2011 regular season opened.

Emaus batted just .162 with a .424 OPS across 42 plate appearances, however, and was designated for assignment by New York earlier this week.

Now he’s back with Toronto.

According to beat writer Adam Rubin of ESPN New York, the 25-year-old Emaus passed through waivers without drawing much attention from other major league clubs and was returned to the Blue Jays on Thursday evening for a $25,000 fee.

Emaus was assigned to Triple-A and will act as organizational infield depth. Quite a change in three weeks.

Emaus did not cost as much as other mistakes by the Mets. The Jays could have protected him, but they felt that at best he would only be a bench player in the majors. The Mets gave him a chance; however the original evaluation by the Jays was correct.